Shoe shank



Nov. 2 7, 1934. A. D sEBAsTlANl 1,982,357

SHOE SHANK Filed March 6, 1935 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 27, 1934 UNITED STATES A N OFFICE v r 1,932,357 A "SHOE Alfred B. Sebastiani, ontreal}, Quebec. Canada. 3

Application March 6, 1933, seriai ivaesa-isa In Canada February 16, 1933 3 Claims. (01. 36-7 This invention relates to metal shoe shanks and the object is to provide an arch supporting shank that is more flexible than the shanks heretofore used for this purpose and which may be used in 5, connection with any type of shoe.

The arch supporting shank provided in accordance with this invention comprises a plurality of sections interlocked in end to end relation so that these sections are capable of a wide range of 10-; relative movement in one direction to provide an arch support'that is extremely flexible compared with the arch supporting shanks heretofore employed. Another advantage of the present invention is that the interlocking connection belgfig tween the sections effectively holds the same against separation during flexure of the shoe in which they are embodied.

Proceeding now to a more detailed description of the invention reference will be had to the flq accompanying drawing, in which- Fig. 1 is a fragmentary perspective view of a shoe equipped with a shoe shank constructed in accordance with this invention, a portion of the inner sole of the shoe being broken away to disfli jgclose the arrangement of the shank.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view of the shank as it appears before being applied to the shoe.

Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the construction shown in Fig. 2. In this view the tape bend- 89 mg the sections together is omitted.

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 3 but showing the sections of the shank in separated relation.

As shown in the drawing the improved shank comprises three sections 5, 6 and '7 which are tw g-interlocked in end to end relation to provide a shank of the usual longitudinal curvature. In the present instance the section 6 is shown provided with T-shaped slots 8 and 9 located adjacent its opposite ends. T-shaped projections 10 Mlnflnd 11, formed integral with the adjacent ends of the sections and '7, arepassed through these slots and arranged, as in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive, so that the sections are thus interlocked against separation but are capable of assuming positions prof relatively sharp angularity with respect to each other when bent in the direction of the concave side of the shank by flexure of the shoe or otherwise. In this connection it will be noted that the stem portions of the projections and *...11 lie within the wide portions of the slots 8 and 9, while the heads of the projections engage with the upper surface of the section 6 at opposite sides of said slots. This engagement of the heads of the projections 10 and 11 with the upper sur- 5g face of the section 6, together with the overlapping relation of the sections, limits relative movement between the sections in one direction so that collapse of the arch formed by the shank is effectively prevented. The sections 6 and 7 are curved transverselyto present lengthwise extending channels at their upper surfaces. The heads of the projections 10 and 11 are similarly curved to fit snugly within the channel of the section 6 so that these heads lie within the depth of the channel in the extended position of the sections and will not project to any appreciable extent beyond the upper side edges of the section 6 when the various sections are bent relative to each other in the direction of the concave side of the shank. The curvature of the section 7 adds strength to this section and also enables it to fit snugly against the bottom curved surface of the section 6, as shown to advantage in Fig. 3.

The shank is applied in the usual manner as shown in Fig. 1, wherein it will be noted that the lower section 5 is fastened in place by a nail or the like driven through a suitable opening 5av while the upper section 7 is similarly fastened in place by suitable nails passing through the openings 7a or in any desired manner. If it is desired to bind the sections of the shank together this may be conveniently accomplished by applying a strip of tape to extend around the sections longitudinally of the shank as indicated by dotted lines 12 in Fig. 2, wherein it will be noted that a portion of the tape is received in the notch 13 provided at the free end. of the section '7. This taping is resorted to principally for the purpose of providing a flexible binder that will hold the sections in their arch forming relation without preventing the relative movement between the sections that is necessary to afford the desired degree of flexibility.

Having thus fullydescribed what I now consider to be the preferred embodiment of my invention, it will be understood that various modifications may be resorted to with respect to the construction and assembly of the different parts or sections of the shank. For example, the shank may be made of any desired length and may be composed of any number of sections joined together by the particular type of joints described herein or by any other type of joints that can be used to the same advantage.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. An articulated shank or arch support for shoes comprising a transversely curved intermediate section provided with substantially T- sh'apedopenings adjacent its opposite ends, and

a pair of terminal sections having T-shaped projections at their inner ends adapted to be passed through said openings to provide interlocking connections between said sections, the heads of said projections being transversely curved to conform to the transverse curvature of the intermediate section and to lie snugly thereagainst.

2. An articulated shank or arch support for shoes comprising an intermediate section transversely curved to present an upwardly facing channel, a pair of terminal sections having T- shaped projections at their inner ends adapted to be passed upwardly through similarly shaped openings at opposite ends of the intermediate section to provide interlocking connections between said sections, the heads of said projections being transversely curved to fit snugly within the channel of the intermediate section.

3. An articulated shank or arch support for shoes comprising an intermediate section provided with substantially T-shaped openings adjacent its opposite ends, said section being transversely curved to present a channel at its upper surface and a pair of terminal sections having T-shaped projections at their inner ends, the stem v portions of said projections being passed through said openings from beneath the intermediate section and removably engaged in the wide portions of said openings with the heads of the projections spanning the narrow portions of said openings and engaging the upper surface of said intermediate section to restrict relative movement of the sections in one direction while permitting substantially free relative movement in the opposite direction, the heads of said projections being transversely curved to fit snugly within the upwardly facing channel of the intermediate section and the relative shape and dimensions of the openings and projections being such as to provide an interlocking connection between the sections in their extended positions while permitting the projections to be readily withdrawn from the openings by movement of the sections to predetermined relative angular positions, in the course of which the projections are disposed edgewise with respect to the intermediate section and withdrawn through the slots by relative tilting of said sections.

' ALFRED D. SEBASTIANI. 

